Indian consumer confidence highest in Asia-Pacific : MasterCard

Indians are the most optimistic consumers in Asia-Pacific as per the MasterCard Index of Consumer Confidence.

The index released on Tuesday reveals that India achieved a score of 93.1 out of 100 in consumer confidence. India was also the only country that scored above 90 among the 17 other countries covered in the index.

“A majority of Indians (91.5) are confident about employment prospects in the country and there has been a 3.1 point rise in the number of people who have a positive outlook on the economy, from 91.4 in second half of 2014 to 94.5 in first half of 2015,” MasterCard said in a statement. “People also expressed optimism that their regular income may increase, as well as confidence that their quality of life may improve over the next six months. The highest levels of optimism were seen in the cities of New Delhi and Bengaluru,” the statement added.

In countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand, the consumer confidence decreased.

“Consumer confidence is a more nuanced story for Asia Pacific in 2015 as economic uncertainty has begun to impact more developing markets. India is now the only market in Asia Pacific in which consumers are extremely optimistic about the future,” said Matthew Driver, Group Executive, Global Products & Solutions, Asia Pacific, MasterCard. “The energy that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has brought to his reform agenda is being well received and having meaningful outcomes. Indeed the International Monetary Fund is forecasting that India’s economy will grow 7.5 per cent this year, outpacing China for the first time since 1999,” he added.

For deriving the index, between May and June 2015, MasterCard asked 8,718 urban, banked consumers, aged 18 to 64 in 17 Asia Pacific markets to give a six-month outlook on five economic factors including the economy, employment prospects, regular income prospects, the stock market and their quality of life.

COMMENT NOW